The Saints of South Elmham

The scattered group of parishes which makes up South Elmham is collectively known as Saints Country. This is an area of high arable farmland, with huge skies and endless views, punctuated by little villages with the names of St James, St Margaret, St Michael, St Nicholas, St Peter, St Cross and All Saints.

Although there is no firm evidence for this, it is believed that South Elmham was an important religious centre in Anglo-Saxon times. South Elmham Hall, where the walk begins, is a 16th-century moated manor house on the site of an old hunting lodge and deer park used by the bishops of Norwich. It was an 11th-century bishop, Herbert de Losinga, who built the minster here, possibly over the ruins of a 7th-century wooden church. The historian Bede refers to an Anglo-Saxon see at Elmham, which may either have been here or at North Elmham in Norfolk. We know that Felix of Burgundy arrived in Suffolk to convert East Anglia to Christianity and established his cathedral at Dunwich. South Elmham, 14 miles (22.6km) inland, would have made an obvious spot for a second church.

The present owners of South Elmham Hall, John and Jo Sanderson, have opened their land to walkers and made a number of environmental improvements under a countryside stewardship scheme designed to ensure a balance between farming and conservation. New hedgerows have been planted and green corridors have been established alongside all of the fields, providing paths for walkers and important habitats for wildlife. Come here at dusk and you may be lucky enough to see barn owls swooping for mice and voles. Although the route of the walk mostly uses public rights of way, there is also an extensive network of permissive paths across the farm, which includes parkland, arable fields and pasture for a herd of British White cattle.

At the mid-point of the walk you have the chance to visit St Peter's Hall, a 13th-century moated farmhouse that was extended in 1539 using materials from the abandoned Flixton Priory. This magnificent house is now home to St Peter's Brewery, which produces traditional ales from local barley and malt and water from a deep bore-hole below the hall. Among the beers that they have revived are Suffolk Gold, wheat beer, honey porter, spiced winter ale, elderberry beer and a millennium brew dating back to the year 1000 and containing juniper and nettles but no hops. The shop is open every day for you to buy beer to take home but the best time to visit is at weekends (Friday to Sunday) when you can take a tour of the brewery and sample the beers in the lovely old bar.

What to look for

Take a close look at the sundial outside St Michael's Church, with its admonishing inscription 'Why stand gazing? Be about your business.' Inside the church, look for the roll of honour to the 11 local men who served in World War One. St Michael was one of just 31 'thankful villages' in England where all the men returned safely.

Where to eat and drink

There are only two options on the walk and both are open for limited hours. Bateman's Barn Café, at South Elmham Hall, serves lunches, teas and home-made cakes on Sundays and also on Thursdays and Fridays in summer. The bar and restaurant at St Peter's Hall are open from Friday to Sunday throughout the year. At other times you will need to take a picnic.

While you're there

The nearby town of Bungay is full of historic buildings and interesting little cafés and shops. The main attractions are the 17th-century Butter Cross in the Market Place and the ruined 12th-century Bigod's Castle, built by the notorious warlord Hugh Bigod. Just outside Bungay, at Earsham, is the Otter Trust, where otters are prepared for their reintroduction to the wild in a tranquil setting beside the River Waveney.